Ecumenical vigil lifts up needs of displaced persons in challenging times for immigrants and refugees
The Presbyterian Office of Public Witness joins in prayers and calls for hope, courage and justice
LOUISVILLE — The need for an abundance of hope and support for immigrants and refugees, as well as those who serve them, was lifted up during an ecumenical prayer vigil hosted by Church World Service recently that included participation by the Presbyterian Office of Public Witness (OPW).
The online event was part of a series of “Stand for Compassion” vigils that CWS has been holding in solidarity with those facing increased difficulties finding safe haven due to anti-immigrant policies and actions.
“It is so important to support our immigrants and refugees,” said keynote speaker the Rev. Eddy Alemán, general secretary for the Reformed Church in America. “Right now, we need more hope than ever before because of the situation that we are living (in) during this time.”
The Rev. Christina Cosby, OPW representative for domestic and environmental policy concerns, opened the Friday vigil by reading from Hebrews 13, which says in part, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that, some have entertained angels without knowing it.”
She went on to pray for the collective courage to “stand for justice with the unhoused and the hungry, with the immigrant, with the oppressed and imprisoned, with the sick and the forgotten,” later adding, “we decry our broken political landscape where the poor are criminalized and the wealthy exalted, where the basic human needs are stripped away while the powerful are served. Forgive us, O God, for the ways we have been complicit in these systems.”
Abbey Combs, Program Officer for Migrant and Refugee Response with CWS Latin America and the Caribbean, provided a brief overview of some of the current challenges affecting migrants from those parts of the world.
“There is a lot of uncertainty being faced by those who are migrating and also those who serve migrants in the region, with these constant changes that we're seeing politically,” Combs said.
Because of the U.S. cancellation of a border app that had helped nearly 1 million people to enter the U.S. legally, some asylum seekers are in limbo, not knowing whether to stay in Mexico or to go to another country. Reverse migration along dangerous routes has led to deadly consequences, including an 8-year-old child drowning when a boat capsized in choppy waters near Panama. Combs also spoke of certain migrants being targeted for deportation by the U.S. government to countries that are not their own, foreign aid suspensions, and some shelters having to close at a time when needs are increasing.
“I just want to thank you all for your continued prayers for displaced people around the world” as well as for CWS partners who work tirelessly to meet people’s needs in a time of change, Combs said.
During brief remarks, Alemán said during Lent, “our hope needs to continue to grow more than ever before.” However, “it's not a hope that is given like the world gives. This is a spiritual kind of hope.”
Alemán highlighted encouraging words from a letter that apostle Peter wrote to Christians who were experiencing persecution and trials during biblical times.
Turning to 1 Peter 1:3-9, Alemán noted, there is assurance of a “new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” and of “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.”
The Apostle Peter also wrote that challenges come so that “the proven genuineness of your faith of greater worth than gold — which perishes, even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
So trials “really mold us to who we need to be,” Alemán said, encouraging listeners to continue to look to Peter’s words for guidance “as we continue to serve and bless the communities that really need to hear a message of hope during this season.”
During the call-to-action portion of the vigil, viewers were reminded of the Ash Wednesday Ecumenical Declaration, which CWS describes as “a solemn and unshakable commitment by religious leaders and organizations to stand against policies that endanger refugees and immigrants.” For more information, read about the declaration here and here.
The next Stand for Compassion vigil will be on April 11. Registration information is here.
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